In the early 30s of the last century, the Soviet Union had a certain interest in flying tanks, in that era when tank tracks were not very suitable for long-distance marching, trying to make the tank enter the battlefield from the air not only fast, but also to hit the enemy by surprise, Soviet designers put forward 3 schemes, one of the more famous is to install a glider for the BT-2 light tank, this design was used again during World War II, that is, the A-40 developed with the T-60 light tank.
The flying tanks of this period were all theoretical and technical explorations, and the relevant research work was completely suspended in 1933, and in May 1937, the designer Mikhail. Smarcko again proposed a flying tank design, which was named MAS-1, also known as LT-1.
This is a completely new design, it is based on the BT-7 high-speed light tank, this tank has a feature, that is, it can be used for both wheels and tracks, it can remove the track and drive with rubber load wheels, and use the first pair of load wheels for steering. However, the shape of the BT-7 did not conform to aerodynamics, so the designers redesigned it with a rounded armor shell that looked like a small fat pier, and the thickness of this shell was 10 mm considering the weight control of the tank. The turret is partially reduced and can still rotate 360°, and a 12 is mounted inside7 mm heavy machine gun and 1 7.62 mm auxiliary machine gun, 3000 rounds and 2000 rounds of ammunition were planned.
Unlike its predecessors, the MAS-1 is an autonomously powered tank, with a propeller shaft leading from the power compartment to drive a pair of two-bladed propellers at the front of the hull, which can be flattened and folded back into the storage compartment when not in use. Retractable wings foldable to fold back were installed on both sides of the hull, with a rear wingspan of 16At 2 meters, this wing provides armor protection from being easily damaged by enemy light ** when landing, and the tail of the aircraft is partially mounted on a retractable tail boom. The entire MAS-1 flying tank was equipped with only a driver-pilot, a commander--gunner, and 2 radios.
The MAS-1 was not actually built, only a demonstration model was made, and the Soviets quickly rejected this design, mainly because the Soviets thought that the technology of hanging a light tank on the belly of a large bomber was more reliableAt that time, it seemed to be a big technical problem, the tank engine and gearbox were not designed for aviation flight, and the BT-7 tank weighed more than 13 tons, even if the weight was reduced, it would not be much lighter after adding the wings, tail and other parts, and the wing strength could support it?Can the suspension withstand the impact of landing?It would be a wise move to abandon the MAS-1 project.